Danny Welbeck has been reflecting on his deadline-day switch from Manchester United to Arsenal.

The England international striker joined the Gunners in a reported £16 million deal after being told by United manager Louis van Gaal that he does not feature in his plans.

The 23-year-old had been on the books of the Red Devils since 2001 and his departure from Old Trafford came under dramatic circumstances.

Welbeck was with the England national team on deadline day as the events of the day unfolded, and he has now revealed how Arsenal midfielder Jack WIlshere was immensely eager for him to make the switch

‘The chance to sign for Arsenal came up but I was quite calm about it (on transfer deadline day)’, he told the Arsenal Magazine. ‘I was with the England team and sat in my hotel room at The Grove with Jordan Henderson just chilling, just doing what I’d normally do and waiting for a phone call to see what was going to happen.

‘But every time we went to breakfast, lunch and dinner, Jack (Wilshere) was on my case, asking ‘has it happened yet?’ There was dialogue between Arsenal and Manchester United obviously but at that time you don’t know (if the deal will go through). At the end of the night it was good that everything was all clear in terms of what I was doing’.

Subhankar Mondal

A football journalist based in Wakefield, Subhankar Mondal has previously worked for Goal.com International and Skysports.com, and has had his sports articles published in The Guardian and The Observer. He has also been on the BBC in the past and his name once found its way to the pages of the World Soccer magazine. He was recently cited in a major Louis van Gaal biography.